The Hollywood Walk of Fame is comprised of more than 2400 stars awarded to people in the entertainment industry for motion pictures, television, theater, recording, and radio. E.M. Stuart, the volunteer president of the Hollywood Chamber of Commerce, is credited with conceiving the idea in 1953. The design for the star was approved by 1956 and between then and 1957 more than 1500 honorees were selected by a committee representing the different entertainment industries. Here’s a complete list of all those artists recognized with a musical star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame from 1957 through 2017:

Monday, June 27, 2016

Since the early part of the 20th century, musicals have fueled American music with some of its most beloved standards. In the first half of the 1900’s, many pop hits were recordings of songs which had originated on the Broadway stage. What follows is a list of the top 100 Broadway songs, as determined by an aggregate of 34 Broadway song collections and best-of lists. The show and the year of its stage premiere are listed after each song.

31. Oklahoma! (Oklahoma!, 1943)
32. On My Own (Les Miserables, 1985)
33. There’s No Business Like Show Business (Annie Get Your Gun, 1946)
34. I Got Rhythm (Girl Crazy, 1930)
35. Luck Be a Lady (Guys and Dolls, 1950)
36. Put on a Happy Face (Bye Bye Birdie, 1960)
37. Seventy-Six Trombones (The Music Man, 1957)
38. Getting to Know You (The King and I, 1951)
39. Can You Feel the Love Tonight? (The Lion King, 1997)
40. The Time Warp (The Rocky Horror Picture Show, 1973)

41. Hello, Dolly! (Hello, Dolly!, 1964)
42. Do-Re-Mi (The Sound of Music, 1959)
43. Sunrise, Sunset (Fiddler on the Roof, 1964)
44. Day by Day (Godspell, 1971)
45. Shall We Dance? (The King and I, 1951)
46. Can’t Help Lovin’ Dat Man (Show Boat, 1927)
47. If Ever I Would Leave You (Camelot, 1960)
48. The Party’s Over (Bells Are Ringing, 1956)
49. Smoke Gets in Your Eyes (Roberta, 1933)
50. As Long As He Needs Me (Oliver!, 1960)

61. Hello, Young Lovers (The King and I, 1951)
62. New York, New York (On the Town, 1944)
63. Almost Like Being in Love (Brigadoon, 1947)
64. I Get a Kick Out of You (Anything Goes, 1935)
65. The Lady Is a Tramp (Babes in Arms, 1937)
66. People Will Say We’re in Love (Oklahoma!, 1943)
67. Once in Love with Amy (Where’s Charley?, 1948)
68. Maybe This Time (Cabaret, 1966)
69. You Can’t Stop the Beat (Hairspray, 2002)
70. Falling in Love with Love (The Boys from Syracuse, 1938)

71. Superstar (Jesus Christ Superstar, 1971)
72. Comedy Tonight (A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum, 1962)
73. This Is the Moment (Jekyll and Hyde, 1997)
74. People (Funny Girl, 1964)
75. The Flesh Failures/Let the Sunshine In (Hair, 1964)
76. All I Ask of You (The Phantom of the Opera, 1986)
77. Over the Rainbow (The Wizard of Oz, movie: 1939)
78. Edelweiss (The Sound of Music, 1959)
79. Wouldn’t It Be Loverly (My Fair Lady, 1956)
80. Try to Remember (The Fantastics, 1960)

81. Mack the Knife (The Threepenny Opera, 1928)
82. Younger Than Springtime (South Pacific, 1949)
83. Bill (Show Boat, 1927)
84. Summer Nights (Grease, 1972)
85. Hernando’s Hideaway (The Pajama Game, 1954)
86. June Is Bustin’ Out All Over (Carousel, 1945)
87. On a Clear Day You Can See Forever (On a Clear Day You Can See Forever, 1965)
88. I Enjoy Being a Girl (Flower Drum Song, 1958)
89. This Can’t Be Love (The Boys from Syracuse, 1938)
90. The Phantom of the Opera (The Phantom of the Opera, 1986)

91. So in Love (Kiss Me, Kate, 1948)
92. Camelot (Camelot, 1960)
93. Where or When (Babes in Arms, 1937)
94. Close Every Door (Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dream Coat, 1972)
95. For Good (Wicked, 2003)
96. There’s a Small Hotel (On Your Toes, 1936)
97. Wheels of a Dream (Ragtime, 1996)
98. Springtime for Hitler (The Producers, 2001)
99. Beauty and the Beast (Beauty and the Beast, 1998)
100. It’s a Hard-Knock Life (Annie, 1977)

Thursday, June 23, 2016

Disney movies have not only provided some of cinema’s most memorable visual moments, but some of the most cherished musical memories as well. Most of these songs are from Disney animated movies; some are from live-action films; others (noted in parentheses when not a movie) are from TV shows, Disneyland, and even one from the World’s Fair.

This list was created from 46 best-of lists and Disney album collections.

1. When You Wish Upon a Star (Pinocchio, 1940)
2. Circle of Life (The Lion King, 1994)
3. A Whole New World (Aladdin, 1992)
4. Colors of the Wind (Pocahontas, 1995)
5. Part of Your World (The Little Mermaid 1989)
6. A Dream Is a Wish Your Heart Makes (Cinderella, 1950)
7. Kiss the Girl (The Little Mermaid, 1989)
8. Beauty and the Beast (Tale As Old As Time) (Beauty and the Beast, 1991)
9. Someday My Prince Will Come (Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, 1937)
10. I Wanna Be Like You (The Jungle Book, 1967)

31. You Can Fly! You Can Fly! You Can Fly! (Peter Pan, 1953)
32. So This Is Love (Cinderella, 1950)
33. A Spoonful of Sugar (Mary Poppins, 1964)
34. Siamese Cat Song (Lady and the Tramp, 1955)
35. Let It Go (Frozen, 2013)
36. Second Star to the Right (Peter Pan, 1953)
37. The Ballad of Davy Crockett (TV - Davy Crockett, 1955)
38. Mickey Mouse Club March (TV - The Mickey Mouse Club, 1955)
39. When She Loved Me (Toy Story 2, 1999)
40. I Just Can’t Wait to Be King (The Lion King, 1994)

61. Best of Friends (The Fox and the Hound, 1981)
62. Friend Like Me (Aladdin, 1992)
63. Hawaiian Roller Coaster Ride (Lilo & Stitch, 2002)
64. He Lives in You (The Lion King II: Simba’s Pride, 1998)
65. If I Never Knew You (Pocahontas, 1995)
66. If I Didn’t Have You (Monsters Inc., 2001)
67. Zero to Hero (Hercules, 1997)
68. Candle on the Water (Pete’s Dragon, 1977)
69. Life Is a Highway (Cars, 2006)
70. That’s How You Know (Enchanted, 2007)

Monday, June 13, 2016

The famed Apollo Theater in Harlem, New York, dates back to the mid-19th century when Civil War General Edward Ferrero founded Apollo Hall as a dance hall and ballroom. In 1872, his lease expired and the building was converted to a theater. It closed shortly before the turn of the century, but the Apollo Theater resurfaced around 1913 in a new building at 253 West 125th Street. It declined again in the 1960s and ‘70s, but was revived in 1983. It gained fame over the years for featuring almost exclusively African-American performers.

In recent years, they launched their own Walk of Fame (also called the Legends Hall of Fame). There doesn’t seem to be a complete list of inductees, but here’s what the DMDB has compiled from various sources:

Thursday, June 9, 2016

The American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers (ASCAP) presents a Golden Note Award to, as the website says “songwriters, composers, and artists who have achieved extraordinary career milestones.” Here are the known recipients from 1982 to 2016: